


Too Warm of a Welcome

by AbsVoD7



Category: Underfell - Fandom
Genre: Flower is friend, Gen, Pacifist Route, The Beginning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-14
Updated: 2016-12-14
Packaged: 2018-09-08 12:08:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8844376
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AbsVoD7/pseuds/AbsVoD7
Summary: The human recently fallen finds Flowey who bears the bad news of not so pleasant monsters being real. Upon getting acquainted with one another, the two come up with the idea of working together to escape. Unfortunately, after meeting the unstable Toriel and the mysterious terror of Napstablook the two start to question what is and isn't possible for them.





	

**Author's Note:**

> While this is the third work I've written, it's chronologically the first of all my previous and upcoming Underfell stories.

     The human was sprawled out amidst a large bed of flowers. As they sat up from the ground they could feel aching all over. _Man that hurts,_  the human thought to their self. Upon looking up they were able to recognize the edge that they had fallen from earlier. _No wonder why this place has such a bad rep,_ _I ought to find a different way out. Not planning on becoming another story to feed that legend,_ they continued to think. The human managed to stand up but they were still in a lot of pain. As they took a step forward they felt sharp pain causing them to lose their balance and hit the floor again. _Come on, I know I can do this,_  the human thought while pushing their self off the ground. Once back on two feet again they proceeded to drag their right leg across the ground while looking for a way out. _This area seems rather straightforward. There’s a door over there too. I guess I fell into an area under construction, but wouldn’t there have been a warning?_ The human thought while shuffling ever closer to the door. _I guess I was in over my head come to think about it. The legends say that those who travel to Mt. Ebott never come back._

     The human finally reached the door but decided to take a short breather before going in. _Hopefully I can get some help soon; not sure how I plan on dealing with these injuries just yet. I am curious to see what they were trying to build though,_  the human thought. As they opened the door only confusion came to mind as they saw another room with practically nothing in it. _What's going on here?_ The human thought while advancing. As they proceeded they noticed a lone flower in the middle of the room which caused them to pause for a moment and shrug. _This one chose a weird place to grow in._   _He’s getting almost no sunlight. Definitely would’ve been better off in the other room,_  the human thought. They then got to moving again but stopped the moment they heard the sound of someone letting out an unpleasant groan.

     “I’m sick of it,” were the words of an unidentified voice.

     “Who are you, where are you?” The human asked slightly panicked.

     “Not sure how you were able to switch things up on me, but you’re in for a rude awakening if you think I’ll go quietly this time,” the mystery voice said. At this point the human’s thoughts were a jumbled mess. _What? Who? Where? Are they coming from the exit? No, it sounds much closer than that!_ Suddenly two vines had erupted from the ground and tied themselves around the human.

     “What is going on?” The human shouted in fear.

     “Don’t pretend to be all reserved now. Do you really mean to tell me that you’re not going to try to put up a fight?” The mystery voice had asked.

     “Fight? Why?” The human asked. It was then that the vines quickly tightened around the human causing them to scream out in pain.

     “Wait a minute,” the mystery voice said. At that point the vines loosened up a tad. The human had noticed moving along their peripherals. They had looked down to see that the lone flower was slowly turning around. As the head of the flower went 180 it became apparent that the flower had a face directly in the center.

     “No way, you’re a human!” The flower said while making the vines go away. At that point the human fell down to their knees and started to chuckle.

     “You’re… a talking… flower,” the human said before completely blacking out. It was a little while later that the human had woke up. _That was way too crazy of a dream,_  the human thought. _I can’t believe I thought vines were attacking and flowers could talk._  They then tried to move but were stuck. At this point they looked around and saw that their arms and feet were bound by vines that connected to the wall behind them as well as the floor. _No way, that couldn’t have been real,_  the human thought.

     “So you’re awake now,” said the patiently waiting flower. The human turned their head and without a doubt the same flower was looking directly at them with a slightly bothered expression.

     “You! Who are you and why are you holding me here!” The human said while trying to power their way through the vines.

     “That’s pretty ungrateful. Your condition was horrible by the time that I got to you. No matter, I don’t mind patting myself on the back,” the flower said while checking the human’s body for more injuries.

     “Wait, you were taking care of me while I was knocked out?” The human asked with a confused look on their face.

     “Duh, can’t you tell?” The flower responded. The human had checked their self out and moved a bit. Surprisingly the pain that they felt before was practically nonexistent.

     “Wow, uh. Thanks I guess but this is all still rather confusing for me. Why did you give such a hostile first impression earlier?” The human asked still rattled by the fact they’ve been talking to a flower.

     “I thought that you were unpleasant company. It’s not every day that it feels like you’ve seen the world melt around you, am I right,” the flower said while retreating into the dirt and resurfacing in his original position.

     “I see what you mean,” the human said while nodding. At this point they noticed the flower’s expression become a little more disturbed.

     “Look, is it ok if you let me out of these vines, please? I’m trying to get out of here, once I find out where here is,” the human asked.

     “I can’t do that, mainly because humans have been known to bring their foot down on things as out of place as myself given the chance,” the flower had answered. The human proceeded to ponder the reason for a short moment before realizing what the flower was getting at.

     “Oh, I see. Trust me when I say that I don’t intend to stomp on you,” the human responded.

     “I appreciate it but the answer is still no. I don’t know you well enough to trust that you won’t try anything sudden,” the flower said while loosening the vines a tad just in case they were too tight.

     “Ok then, now for the more obvious questions. Who are you, and what are you for that matter,” the human asked.

     “You can call me Flowey, Flowey the flower,” Flowey responded.

     “But how can flow-I’m a monster,” Flowey said interrupting the human.

     “Okay, I know for sure that-Monsters do exist. They’ve made their homes all throughout the underground,” Flowey said interrupting the human yet again. The human at this point only stared on in silence hoping that this was all some sort of elaborate joke.

     “This is hell,” Flowey said all of a sudden. The human eyes got extremely wide as they started pondering if they were really in hell.

     “Are you sure?” The human asked wanting more than ever for all this to be a dream.

     “That’s what the human that was here before you said as they were being dragged off to the King’s castle. I didn’t quite get it to be honest, but I suppose that humans use that term to describe unpleasant places. If that’s the case then they were absolutely right,” Flowey said while checking the exit every now and then. The human had lifted their head back and rested it upon the wall.

     “You sure you don’t want me to slow down. It might not benefit either of us to have you check out again,” the human ignored Flowey and stared up at the surprisingly smooth cavern ceiling. _All of it is real._ They thought to their self. _I assumed that the legend started because people were bad at navigating mountains but I’m on the brink of witnessing a monster infested underground._

     “Well anyway my name is-You don’t remember your name,” Flowey interrupted one more time.

     “Hold on, how are you going to tell me that I don’t remember my own name,” the human said now more annoyed than ever.

     “I’m so sorry but humans don’t end up remembering their names once they’ve fallen down here. The barrier trapping us down here was polarized with mind altering magic that only affects beings of high soul power capacity,” Flowey explained. The human stared at Flowey with evident confusion. At that point Flowey decided to remove the vines from the human.

     “Listen, I’m about to focus the output of my soul power in your direction,” Flowey said.

     “Hold on now, is that safe?” The human asked with both hands held out in front of them.

     “Calm down, you’ll be fine,” Flowey said. It wasn’t too long before the human was able to feel energy envelop them like it was an extension of Flowey. To their surprise they also felt a similar force coming to life within their self.

     “Can you feel that? That is your soul projecting its own signal in response to me. Your soul will start off pretty weak but it will grow strong if you continue to increase your LV. It’s a bad idea for you to get too much though because you might lose sight of what’s important with too much power,” Flowey explained.

     “LV? You mean like the levels you obtain in games?” The human asked.

     “I don’t think I know what you’re talking about,” Flowey responded.

     “You know, like having higher use of potential I guess,” the human tried to explain.

     “Huh, I guess that works. All this time we were under the assumption that it stood for LOVE,” Flowey said.

     “What made you come to that conclusion?” The human asked.

     “It’s a long story; I promise I’ll get to it later. Let’s go,” Flowey said while retreating underground. As the human stood up they saw him sprout up again in front of the exit doorway. _No time like the present I guess,_  the human thought to their self while heading in his direction.

     “So why does the barrier mess with the minds of humans that have fallen in here?” The human asked Flowey.

     “The King is obsessed with getting revenge and he felt that humans were easier to handle provided that they didn’t fully know themselves. It’s another long story that I’ll get to at some point,” Flowey answered. As the human made it to the middle of the room they had noticed two sets of stairs on the left and right. A large leaf pile separated the two sets of stairs and at the top of the steps was another door. The human slowly started walking towards the leaf pile and with each step they took it felt like the energy in their soul was about to overflow. As the human stood directly in front of the entrance to the Ruins they felt the pent up energy burst from inside them. Before they knew it fear was pushed far away from their mind and they felt rather jubilant all over.

      _This is amazing,_  the human thought to their self. _I know that the world I’m about to see will be highly unusual and more than dangerous. Still I feel like I’m filled with determination,_ they continued to think.

     “This area is rough for me. Could you come over here please, I’m going to need your help,” Flowey asked the human.

     “Ok, what’s the game plan?” The human asked while walking over to Flowey.

     “I’m about to touch you, is that alright?” Flowey had asked. The human only gave him another confused look.

     “I find that hard to answer since I’m almost certain that you don’t have hands or any appendages for that matter,” they responded.

     “Just kneel down and hold out your arm,” Flowey said a little annoyed at this point. The human gave up the inquiries and followed Flowey’s instructions. At that point Flowey stretched his stem/neck and slowly wrapped it around the lower part of the human’s arm. Afterwards he pulled the rest of his stem and roots out of the ground and wrapped them around the human’s arm in the opposite direction.

     “Definitely wasn’t expecting that one. Oh well, let’s get a move on,” the human said while making their way to the steps. “This is an interesting world you live in Flowey. How did you get used to using your soul?” The human asked.

     “I don’t have a soul,” Flowey answered. At this point the human had stopped right at the top of the stairs and looked at Flowey.

     “I’m impressed with myself for handling that so well because you’ve told me some pretty outrageous things. Given that my world has already been turned on its head, I would’ve believed that you didn’t have a soul at this point. Problem is if you truly don’t have a soul then how were you able to do all that soul energy projecting from before? Didn’t you say that my soul reacted to yours?” The human asked.

     “That’s not correct, you reacted to the soul energy which I produced. If I did have a soul then we would’ve continuously bounced waves of energy back at each other. It’s a mystery to me as well to be honest. Don’t worry about it, I’ve always felt like I’ve undergone an extreme change. However I don’t remember anything prior to making my escape from the King’s Castle. Maybe one day it’ll all come back,” Flowey said while urging the human to keep moving. Upon reaching the next room Flowey asked the human to put them back on the ground. The human knelt down and watched Flowey slowly unwrap himself from their arm.

     “Thank you,” Flowey said while letting out a sigh. “Heights aren’t for me, and it takes a good amount of work to stay on your arm like that. More importantly our next step is to solve the puzzle to opening this door,” Flowey said while looking ahead. The human also looked around the room they were in and noticed that the door before them didn’t come with a knob and six large buttons were on the floor.

     “Why would anyone decide to go through so much work just to make it hard to enter a door?” The human asked.

     “The king has been known to over extend when it comes to security. Unfortunately the entire ruins are built upon the idea of completing lethal and arbitrary tasks to navigate from one room to the next. This one isn’t really complicated. Just follow me and only push the buttons that I tell you to, alright,” Flowey said. The human nodded their head yes in response. Flowey then went into the ground and reappeared next to one of the large buttons.

     “Stand on this one ok,” Flowey said while looking at the button. The human obeyed Flowey’s instructions and continued to move to wherever Flowey would pop up next. Upon stepping on the fourth button Flowey had told them too, the door had opened on its own while the buttons had sprung back up to their original positions.

     “Good job,” Flowey said before diving and popping up next to the door. “The next puzzle should be relatively simple as well,” he continued. The human walked towards the door but stopped upon noticing a sign on the wall left of the exit. The sign had read: Only the fearless may proceed. Brave ones, foolish ones. Both walk not the middle road.

      _I see what’s going on,_  the human thought to their self. _This must be the riddle to the door puzzle._ The human looked back at the buttons and noticed that the two buttons that they didn’t stand on were in the middle of the other four. They also noticed that while the rest of the ground was of disorderly standard, the untouched buttons were on a section of ground that had been tidied up to resemble a simple dirt path.

      _I wonder,_  the human thought while looking at the untouched buttons. They then proceeded to walk towards one but suddenly they had tripped. Their arms fell ahead of the rest of them and their right hand alone landed on the edge of the no longer untouched button. The human looked behind them too see that Flowey had tied their feet together with one of his vines.

     “Flowey? What was that all about?” The human asked.

     “Hey idiot, did you forget that I used the word LETHAL in my explanation,” Flowey responded.

     “What? I was just curious to see what happened if I pressed the wrong button,” the human said.

     “You need to listen to me. Go ahead, take a look. I’d hate to imagine what it would’ve been like had you actually stepped on that thing,” Flowey said angrily. At that point the human turned their sights back on the button and froze as Flowey’s worry was justified. The human’s gaze slowly rose until it became clear that an enormous spike had emerged from the ground in the center of the wrong button.

     “Let’s keep it moving,” Flowey said as he unbound the human’s feet. As the human removed their right hand from the edge of the button the spike had rapidly sank back into the ground. _That was an actual death trap,_  the human thought to their self. _This place is like those ancient tombs that regular people will only ever see in movies. If Flowey hadn’t been there I would’ve made my last mistake!_ Even with their thoughts running rampant the human still managed to follow Flowey into the next room.

     “Alright listen up, all you have to do in this room is flip the switches I tell you to, and ONLY the ones I tell you to, got it?” Flowey asked.

     “You don’t have to tell me twice, at this point I’m more than convinced,” the human responded.

     “Good,” Flowey said while diving and reappearing next to a switch. Flowey was still talking as the human made their way over to him. “We can’t afford to lose focus around here, you know what they say; curiosity killed the kid,” Flowey words caused the human to freeze right next to him. Not sure of what was going on he could only stare back with a puzzled expression on his face.

     “What’s the matter? That is how the saying goes isn’t it?” Flowey asked. The human decided now was a good time to take slow deep breathes.

     “Yeah, that works, I’ll be fine,” the human said while flipping the first switch.

     “Ok, on to the next one then,” Flowey said while diving back underground. The human proceeded down the hall and noticed that the pathway out was blocked by a large spike trap. Upon looking around they saw Flowey resurface next to two switches on the wall to their left.

     “This is the one you need to flip,” Flowey said while looking at the switch on the human’s left side. The human flipped the switch and heard the sound of a clicking noise. Upon looking at the exit path once more all of the spikes could be seen slowly descending into the floor. _It doesn’t seem too bad,_ the human thought while moving towards the exit. _As long as things don’t get escalate too quickly I should be able to handle this well enough._ Within the next room there was no buttons or switches. The only thing there besides the door was an awkwardly shaped, and obviously not human mannequin.

     “I hope you’re ready, because it’s about time that we take a look at your combat skills. You see that dummy over there? I want you to fight it,” Flowey said while looking at the awkward mannequin.

     “Wait? You want me to fight this dummy? Are you sure that’s even necessary?” The human asked.

     “Of course it’s necessary; you are a human traveling through the underground so monsters won’t hesitate to kill you given the chance. That’s why you have to be able to fend for yourself if you want to escape the underground,” Flowey said.

     “Time out, I’m not a fighter! I don’t look forward to hurting someone much less killing them,” the human responded.

     “That’s not good, kid. If you don’t want to share the fate of the other six humans, then you need to get your head in the game and accept the fact that in this world its kill or be killed. Just hit the dummy, everything will get easier in due time,” Flowey said. The human walked up to the dummy and stared at it. For some strange reason it felt like the dummy was staring back. The human looked into their right hand and balled it into a fist. Still it just didn’t feel right to them.

     “No, I’m not going through with it,” the human said while walking away from the dummy. Flowey had let out a sigh before he started talking again.

     “Look, I’m sure it would be neat if you could just walk out of the underground without resorting to violence. However, the monsters aren’t known for showing mercy so your hands are tied in that regard,” Flowey said trying to reason with them.

     “I’m not changing my mind Flowey,” the human responded.

     “Fine, let’s continue. I’ve never seen the monsters show mercy to anything so I hope you have a plan, because I’m positive that you’ll be forced to put your life on the line real soon,” Flowey said while moving on. The human followed Flowey but doubt was lingering on in their mind. _I can’t fight. I don’t want to fight._ The human thought to their self. _Flowey finds it hard to believe there’s another way, but I refuse to accept that there’s nothing else I can do instead. There has to be something different I can do._ Flowey entered the next room and shook his head side to side before looking back at the human.

     “There’s a monster around here, I can feel them. I’m going to scout ahead, if you’re lucky you might get by without attracting unwanted attention. Still if something does happen then… well, I hope you’ve found an answer by now,” Flowey said before diving into the ground. The human took a step forward as Flowey disappeared from sight. Upon looking around they weren’t able to make out anything that could possibly be a monster, or alive for that matter.

     “Odd, maybe it’s asleep, wherever it is,” The human said to no one in particular. As the human turned to the right and took a few more steps they suddenly heard a shuffling sound nearby. Upon searching frantically for a few seconds the human noticed something was working to squeeze its way out from a hole in the wall on their right. Upon successfully making its entrance the monster hopped forward twice and turned its head towards the human.

      _Crap, what should I do?_ The human thought to their self while the monster took another hop in their direction. Suddenly the human watched as the flesh around the monster’s neck bloated up to immense size and disappear with a very deep croaking noise. Next, the human felt a wave of energy envelop their person. Not too long after that they felt a wave come forth from their own body. However, unlike with Flowey, another wave was generated in response to the human’s.

      _The energy waves are constantly bouncing back? This thing must definitely have a soul,_  the human thought. Upon getting back to the problem at hand, the human saw the monster’s eyes had changed to a more unwelcome expression. They then proceeded to take a few steps back but the monster would keep hopping toward them.

     “Look, I’m not looking for a fight,” the human said. “I’m just trying to walk ok. You should go for a walk as well, because you do have… nice feet?” The human had face palmed inside their head upon thinking about what they just said. _That was just awful, there’s no guarantee that this thing can understand what I’m trying to say anyway,_  they thought. The monster stopped advancing and tilted its head to the side in confusion. Afterwards it went back on the offensive and gurgling noises could be heard as the monster bloated up again. The monster opened its mouth wide as it exhaled causing three balls of slime to get launched in the human’s direction.

     “No, no, no!” The human said while sidestepping the first slime ball and ducking under the second. The last one had hit them on the left shoulder knocking them down simultaneously. Slowly but surely the human got back up and the monster hopped towards them yet again.

     “Let’s stop this ok, I’m friendly, don’t you want to be friends?” The human said while motioning peacefully to the monster. The monster tilted its head left and right, clearly it failed to understand the human but it certainly seemed to be trying. The human took another step forward and quickly came to a stop when the monster gave up on understanding them and let out a bark.

     The human had never been this confused before in their entire life. _Did the frog monster really just bark at me?_ They thought. The monster saw the confusion as a good opportunity to attack so it knocked the human down with a lash of its tongue before hopping forward again. As the human was sitting back up they saw Flowey in the distance getting closer and closer. Upon getting back on two feet Flowey had popped up right next to them.

     “Are you alright?” Flowey asked while checking the human for injuries. “I see you caught the attention of a Froggit. We can’t afford to waste time here so kill it quickly,” he ordered.

     “No,” the human responded. “I can talk with it. I’ll convince it to leave us alone,” they responded.

     “Impossible, trying to reason with the monsters down here is foolish enough, but there’s no way a regular Froggit can even understand you,” Flowey said. The human ignored Flowey and slowly walked toward the Froggit.

     “Calm down, I don’t want any trouble,” the human said. The Froggit ignored the human and attempted to knock them down with another tongue lash. The human quickly ducked under the attack before walking forward again.

     “I’m not trying to fight you, I’m sure we can come to an agreement if we give it a try,” the human said. The Froggit quickly backed up as the human took another bold step.

     “I don’t want hurt you; in fact I’d like to be friends. We can be cool, right?” The human asked. The Froggit sat there while giving the human squinty eyes, but after a few seconds the Froggit’s eyes opened wide and its stance was no longer hostile.

     “I see, my apologies human,” the Froggit said. The human had a big smile on their face while Flowey stared on in disbelief.

     “What? Since when can Froggits talk?” Flowey asked.

     “You’re the last person who should be freaked about talking monsters,” the human responded.

     “It was actually a long time ago that a group of advanced Froggits had learned the human language and helped the first fallen one get acquainted with living down here; they were referred to as Wise Croakers. Whenever they weren’t answering the first’s questions they would hang around and tell others about a weird inside joke of theirs dealing with four frogs. Unfortunately the King forced them into hiding a long time ago and it became rare to see a Froggit outside the ruins since,” the Froggit answered.

     “Wow, the first got to see this place at a much better time didn’t they?” The human asked.

     “Most definitely, the King wasn’t always a rough person. It’d be great if the kindness you’ve shown could soothe the strained lives of the underground. However, from what I’ve seen out of this place alone, I hate to admit that wishful thinking would be more accurate in comparison to the truth,” the Froggit said while lowering its head. The human walked over to the Froggit and pat its head.

     “So I’ve heard, still I feel that given the chance I should at least try. Hopefully I’ll meet other monsters out there that are as reasonable as you. I wasn’t ready for Flowey but considering what I’ve heard about monsters so far I was very lucky to have met him. Then again he did give me a killer first impression before I even knew monsters were a thing,” the human said.

     “Guilty as charged,” Flowey said.

     “You’ve got heart human; it’s not going to be easy to befriend monsters. Then again, there might be a small chance that your actions remind the monsters of old what the first fallen hoped to accomplish. Either way good luck on your journey,” the Froggit said while hopping towards another hole in the wall.

     “Thanks, take care,” the human said while waving goodbye.

     “That was certainly interesting, at least he let you get buy,” Flowey said while examining the dirt path before him. “Still, you need to be careful. I’m sure you’d like to try to reason with everyone but it won’t do any good against the more vicious monsters,” Flowey said.

     “I guess you’re right. Hostile engagements are inevitable and I still don’t have an answer to it all. Question for you Flowey, do you know anything about the first fallen?” The human asked.

     “If I did then I don’t remember unfortunately,” Flowey answered. “Let’s ease our thoughts and just focus on getting across the upcoming spike bridge for now,” he continued.

     “Alright,” the human said with a sigh. They proceeded with many thoughts running amok until they came up upon the spike bridge. They then crossed their arms and stood silently in front of the puzzle.

     “You won’t get over it anytime soon will you? You didn’t even stop to read the hint for the puzzle,” Flowey said to the human. The human looked at Flowey and proceeded to scratch the back of their head with their right hand.

     “Sorry about that. I’m trying to keep my head in the game but so much has happened and I’m sure it won’t ease up as we continue,” the human said.

     “Don’t worry, like I said before we have to take these things one at a time or else we won’t accomplish anything. We can take a short break if you need to, the area past this one is usually empty from what I remember,” Flowey said.

     “No, I’ll be fine. Let’s proceed,” the human responded.

     “Ok then. I had already checked out the hint to the riddle before moving back to find you and the Froggit,” Flowey said.

     “Really? How did you get up high enough to see it?” The human asked.

     “I had made a vine and climbed up. It was more work than I usually prefer to be honest,” Flowey answered. “The hint said that the western room is the eastern room’s blueprint, which is why I was examining the dirt road back there,” he explained.

     “I’m not sure how this is supposed to work,” the human said while looking at the spike bridge with a doubtful expression. The water on both sides of the bridge seemed just as questionable.

     “Just trust me. Stand directly in front of the first spikes,” Flowey said.

     “Ok then,” the human said with a shrug. Upon getting directly in front of the bridge all the spikes descended into the ground.

     “Good, now notice how the bridge is made up of two rows of square plates,” Flowey said. The human looked down and sure enough the bridge seems to be entirely comprised of pressure plates. “To step on the first safe spot you’re going to have to start from the right side,” Flowey said.

     “Ok, no problem,” the human said while attempting to take a step forward.

     “Wait,” Flowey said. The human instantly ceased to advance and turned around.

     “What, am I in danger?” They asked.

     “No, I stopped you because I need to use your arm again,” Flowey said. The human let out a short chuckle before crouching down so that Flowey could latch on to them once more. Flowey nodded to the human upon getting situated.

     “Alright, now step on the first four squares ahead of you then switch to the left,” Flowey said. The human followed his directions even though they felt slightly anxious.

     “You’re doing good, go forward four more squares then switch back to the right,” The human took a short glance at the questionable waters as they continued to move on Flowey’s command.

     “Neat, now all you have to do is go forward five spaces and switch to the left side again. After that the path will be straight ahead,” Flowey said.

     “Easy enough,” the human responded while taking the final steps across the bridge. As they reached the other side the human heard a loud sound behind them. Upon turning around they noticed that all the spikes had erected from the bridge panels once more. After that they walked into the next room and brought Flowey back to the ground.

     “Alright, let’s get a move on,” Flowey said while diving and reemerging on the other side of a walkway. The human tried to cross but a large rock was blocking off the walkway.

     “It looks like a lot to handle but I’m sure you can move it if you give it a try,” Flowey said.

     “This got strenuous pretty quick,” the human said while letting out a sigh and placing both hands on the rock.

     “Whoa, just who in the world do you think you are?” A random voice said. The human with their eyes opened wide looked at Flowey who was giving them back the exact same expression. At that point the human’s shocked expression became one of slight annoyance.

     “This wouldn’t happen to be a talking rock by any chance?” The human asked Flowey.

     “I don’t know, I’ve never had to interact with one before,” Flowey responded.

     “You ought as well turn around now cause there’s no way you’re getting past me,” the rock said. At that point the human climbed on top of the rock and sat down which only caused it to laugh.

     “Don’t think that I’ll get a soft spot for you just because you’re bolstering my defenses," the rock said.

     “Exactly how big are the ruins Flowey?” The human asked while the rock continued to boast about its superior structural integrity.

     “They’re actually rather small once you get used to them but I believe we’re about halfway to the exit. There’s a strong monster that’s made their home at the end of the ruins. I think they’ll be searching the outer ruins at this time so we should be able to sneak through their home and escape out the back before they return,” Flowey responded.

     “Ok, I assume they’d prove to be one tough customer if they found us, right?” The human asked.

     “Most definitely, many monsters that got caught unawares were blasted into dust instantly,” Flowey responded.

     “Dust, what’s that all about?” The human asked.

     “When monsters are killed their bodies explode into dust while the soul shatters and fades away,” Flowey answered. “I never got around to that? Sorry,” he finished.

     “Wow, well I’d hate to see you get dusted so let’s get moving,” the human said while hopping down from the rock.

     “Hey, how did you do that? Slipping by me should’ve been impossible,” the rock said. The human turned around and looked back at the rock with one eyebrow raised.

     “Oh, see I had thought about it, and climbing over you seemed like a much easier way but I felt like taking a break,” the human answered.

     “Clever, I wasn’t expecting you to come up with a strategy to offset the weakness of your form. I’ll always cherish the time we spent together. Nothing dared challenge us as we united our powers to create the ultimate defensive tower,” the rock said. The human let out a chuckle as the rock continued talking. _Wow, he sure knows how to solo a two player game,_  they thought to their self.

     “Ok, it’s been fun, bye now,” the human said to the rock that hadn’t stopped talking yet. Within the next room there was an enormous leaf pile straight ahead with two paths on the left and right sides of it. As the human walked towards the enormous leaf pile, it felt as if their soul was about to overflow with energy again. Just like before the air of anticipation was rapidly replaced with a sense of calm and determination.

     “I’m going to check ahead again to see if there’s any trouble in the upcoming rooms,” Flowey said to the human.

     “Ok, but I want to check this way out first,” the human responded while walking along the left path.

     “I don’t think that room has anything important in it,” Flowey said while following them. As the human entered the room they noticed that there wasn’t another exit. There were two pools of water on both sides and what looked like a birdbath in the center. The human walked up to it and saw that there was no water inside but instead a small object contained in a wrapper. Upon pulling it out of the bowl the human held it in their hand and stared. _Could this be?_ The human thought to their self.

     “That’s monster candy,” Flowey said. “It’s strange to think that a bowl of this stuff is just lying around in a place most children would be wise to avoid. You’re very generous to have taken only one,” Flowey said. The human giggled while heading towards the way they came.

     “My manners aside, there was only one piece in the bowl to begin with,” the human said.

     “Really, that makes sense, lucky you for getting the last piece,” Flowey said while following them again. As they entered the door on the right path they came across a long corridor where nothing in particular stood out.

     “This area seems safe enough, like I said before; I’m going to check on a few rooms up ahead so that I can get a better understanding of what we’re dealing with.” Flowey dived into the ground and disappeared from the human’s sight upon finishing his sentence. The human began humming a tune as they walked down the very long corridor. The human didn’t have a care in the world as the soothing walk went on. As the path was almost at its end, the peaceful atmosphere instantly faded as they heard a voice call out to them.

     “Stop right there small one!” The voice commanded. The fear stricken human was now frozen in place as they watched a shadow slowly emerge from the left side of the exit. As the light started to reveal the figure the human saw that their assailant went around bare footed with a thick layer of white fur. The main body was covered by a black robe that was tattered at the bottom with a blood red design in the center. The ears were rather long and small horns could be seen on top of the head. Its eyes were wide open and they were a light yellow color with red pupils. From the looks of it this creature has been without a good night’s rest for quite some time.

     “Hello my child,” the monster said while stepping forward with a wide grin. “My name is Toriel and I’m the caretaker of the ruins. My do you look adorable,” she continued while bringing both hands together and letting her eyes ease up for just a moment. The human at a loss for words just watched on cautiously.

     “Alright, there’s quite a bit of lurkers around but we should be able to handle it,” Flowey said while popping up next to the human. Seeing the horrified expression on the human’s face caused him to be confused.

     “What’s wrong?” Flowey asked. Upon looking in the same direction as the human Flowey had frozen up just like they did. _No way,_ Flowey thought to himself. _I surveyed this area thoroughly, was she hiding in here the whole time?_ Upon seeing Flowey, Toriel gave a confused look with a raised eyebrow. Then the confused expression turned into one of joy.

     “It’s you; my memory definitely hasn’t gotten any better. However if there’s one thing that I do remember...” at that point Toriel opened her palm and a flame sprang to life in her right hand, “...it’s that you’re supposed to die on sight!” Toriel proceeded to let out a disturbing laugh.

     “You’re here to kill Flowey? Why?” The human asked assertively.

     “His death will be the answer to all of my questions. I’ve spent so much time searching, waiting, and suffering for this moment!” Toriel then looked at Flowey and whispered with a smile on her face, “He is the key.” She then held out her left hand in the human’s direction. “Come here my child; you should refrain from getting caught in the blast,” she beckoned.

     “No, I’m not going to let you hurt him,” the human responded. Toriel started scratching the back of her head with her left hand while the fire lived on in her right. The human then moved in front of Flowey and raised their arms on each side while Toriel began talking to herself.

     “Such a brilliant little child they are. Though it’s a little odd, humans don’t care about monsters, do they? I’m sure they don’t, they’re the reason we’re sealed down here in the first place. So why would a human try to protect one? Then again they are a child, maybe they weren’t taught to hate us. I’m not sure but something about it is vaguely familiar,” she finished. Toriel then shook her head side to side for a bit before holding her hand out before the human once more.

     “Enough, you should come to my side right now little one,” Toriel said.

     “No thank you, I’m going to stay right here!” The human responded. Toriel then extinguished the flame in her hand and placed both of her hands on her hips.

     “For what reason would you want to do that?” Toriel asked with an annoyed look.

     “Because Flowey is my friend and I’m not just going to sit here and watch him die,” the human answered. Toriel was completely stunned upon witnessing the human’s display of trust and loyalty. After a short moment she let out a nervous laugh and started talking to herself once more.

     “Such refreshing spirit they have, but they’re stopping me from regaining my most cherished of memories. I’m really not looking forward to hurting another one, yet if I don’t kill him then it’ll probably be lost forever. At the same time I’m really tired of being alone,” Toriel said. Flowey and the human looked at each other for a moment while Toriel continued to talk to herself.

     “It shouldn’t hurt to try,” Toriel said while walking toward the human. They weren’t backing down but they were definitely more than scared as she approached. Upon making it over to the human Toriel reached out to them with their right hand. The human expecting the worst was surprised to see that her eyes had eased up once more and that she was just patting them on the head. Afterwards she reached into one of her robe pockets and pulled out a cell phone.

     “My number is already saved as a contact. Call me if you need help with anything. I’m going home to prepare food and make the place more presentable. See you then,” Toriel said while making her exit. The human looked at the phone in their hand and then at Flowey who was just amazed to be alive.

     “That was way more than I was ready to handle,” Flowey said.

     “You said it, I’m just glad that she considered keeping me alive or else we would’ve both roasted,” the human said while storing away the cell phone.

     “Yeah, hopefully that doesn’t change anytime soon because we do have to escape from the back of her house,” Flowey responded.

     “I know, I figured she was the one you mentioned. The soul energy she projected made it very clear that she was a stronger monster,” the human responded.

     “Well look at you, seems like you’re learning this stuff pretty fast,” Flowey said.

     “Thanks,” the human responded.

     “I should be thanking you. The way you stuck your neck out for me and that stuff you said about me being your friend. At first I was convinced we only teamed up for the sake of making an easier escape. However I’ll admit, your actions have meant a lot,” Flowey said.

     “No problem, you’re the coolest talking flower, albeit the only talking flower, I’ve ever met,” the human responded. Flowey gave a short laugh before letting a sigh.

     “Ok, time for us to get out of here. There will be more time for hanging around if we make it through all of this,” Flowey said while heading for the next room. The human picked up where they left off on the tune they were humming as they followed behind him.

     Within the next area there was a straight forward walkway with a large leaf pile in the middle and two doors on the left side. The human continued following Flowey but the ground gave way as they stepped on the leaves. Upon hearing the human scream, Flowey turned around and looked down into hole.

     “You ok down there?” Flowey asked.

     “Yeah, I’m alright. There happened to be another pile of leaves to land on. There’s a set of stairs down here so I’ll get back up there in a sec,” the human answered.

     “Ok, don’t push yourself,” Flowey said while waiting patiently. _This place is ridiculous,_ the human thought to their self while advancing up the stairs. _I was lucky that there wasn’t a spike trap concealed under this one,_ they continued to think.

     “At least this fall didn’t mess you up like the first one did,” Flowey said to the human as they reached the top of the stairs.

     “You’re going to be in worse shape than that once I get through with you,” a random voice said. Flowey suddenly burst out laughing while the human was confused.

     “What’s going on Flowey?” The human asked.

     “Look up,” Flowey answered. Upon doing so the human saw a monster fluttering about that appeared to be some sort of ghost-fairy.

     “Odd, and what is this thing exactly?” The human asked. The ghost-fairy started shadow boxing.

     “I am your doom, terror will fill your heart upon hearing my nam-this is a Whimsun,” Flowey interrupted.

     “Hey, if you’re going to say it then you have to make sure to add on the extra flare,” the Whimsun complained.

     “They’re not very powerful, instead they can be rather annoying. In fact, fighting one is easy, the hard part is getting them to leave you alone,” Flowey said.

     “Enough talking, come at me,” the Whimsun said while fluttering even closer to the human’s face. The human waved the Whimsun off before proceeding into the next room. “Where are you two going? You think you can get away with ignoring me?” The Whimsun asked while intensifying the fluttering.

     “What is that smell?” The human said while covering their nose.

     “It’s probably because of the cheese. Its been around for quite some time actually,” Flowey answered. The human looked around the room and sure enough there was a moldy piece of cheese on a plate resting atop a table.

     “Who’s idea was this?” The human frustratingly asked with their nose still pinned.

     “You’ll be in worse shape than this cheese once I’m done with you,” the Whimsun chimed in.

     “You’re still here?” Flowey had asked.

     “Whimsun, I’m not trying to be rude but don’t you have something better to do. Surely there are other people you’d rather hang around with instead of us,” the human said.

     “I’m not falling for your tricks. First I’ll mix you up a bit, and then when your flower friend tries to help I’ll pull out all the stops. After that a mouse is going to show up and watch in awe as they witness the legendary power of Whimsun,” the Whimsun kept on shadow boxing while talking.

     “Whimsun could you please”- The human tried reasoning but Whimsun was still going on and on. _Man he can talk,_  the human thought. _I don’t even think that the talking rock was this bad._  The human looked at Flowey who seemed to be thinking along the same lines according to his expression.

     “Enough!” Flowey said. “This human has gained the favor of Toriel so if you mess with them then she’ll roast you to death,” Flowey continued.

     “Toriel!” The Whimsun said with a mortified expression. “This is way too tall of an order,” the Whimsun said while descending to the ground and curling up. Flowey looked up to see the human giving him a disapproving look.

     “What, it had to be done,” Flowey said while taking his gaze off both the human and the Whimsun.

     “Look Whimsun, you’ll be fine but we really just need our space right now. Can you do that for us?” The human asked politely. The Whimsun looked up at the human then stood up on its two tiny legs.

     “You’re not going to forget me are you?” The Whimsun asked.

     “Of course not,” the human responded.

     “Ok, good luck out there,” the Whimsun said before turning around and fluttering back the way it came. The human turned around to see Flowey still wasn’t looking at them.

     “No point in moping around Flowey, I’m not bothered about what you did because I know you were just trying to help calm things down. It is what it is so let’s get back to business alright,” the human said while walking towards the entrance to the next room. Flowey gave a little smirk before following them out the room.

     “Talking down those monsters takes good communication skill. You’ve gone two for three so far; good job seeing how I didn’t expect you to get one,” Flowey said.

     “Two for three, are you not counting Toriel?” The human asked.

     “Nope, like I said earlier, we’re just getting started as far as dealing with her,” Flowey answered.

     “Wouldn’t it be three out of four if we included the rock?” The human asked with one hand up to their chin.

     “Oh yeah, I didn’t even know that was a monster for the longest,” Flowey responded. The human had suddenly came to a stop as Flowey finished his sentence.

     “What’s going on?” Flowey asked.

     “Do you know what that is?” The human asked while pointing up ahead. In the middle of the room there was a pile of leaves and resting on top of them was a dark and smooth figure humming a slightly unnerving tune.

     “I don’t know what that is, it wasn’t here before unless it can go invisible," Flowey said. The human proceeded to take a few steps toward the mystery monster with a noticeable increase in their rate of breathing.

     “What are you doing?” Flowey asked. Nonetheless the human got even closer and tried to tap the monster on its non-existent shoulders.

     “Excuse me, but you happen to be block”- The human’s finger went straight through the monster interrupting their train of thought and causing them to gasp. The monster then rolled over to face the human and gave them an eerie smile. It then proceeded to sit up and levitate off of the floor. There were no arms, no legs, only a smooth, elongated, and intangible body.

     “A human, you don’t see one of those every day,” the monster said while flying around the human. “Tell me human, you wouldn’t happen to be afraid of ghosts by any chance?” The monster said as it stopped flying around. “Either way, here comes Napstablook,” the ghost said while mixing in a sinister laugh.

     “Wait, we don’t want to fight. We’re just looking to escape,” the human said while motioning Napstablook to stop.

     “Is that so? Are you an unfortunate soul who suddenly fell under the weight of a mischievous world?” He asked with an eyebrow raised and an even wider smile.

     “Um, yes?” The human answered while still coming to grips with the situation.

     “Wow, that’s very sad,” he responded with a more sympathetic expression and tears forming in each eye.

     “You don’t have to cry it’ll be- for you that is,” the eerie smile came back as Napstablook interrupted the human. Suddenly streams of tears were propelled directly at the human who managed to dodge them by falling backward on accident.

     “Don’t worry about me; I’m used to the sad times,” he said while repeatedly floating left and right.

     “What was that about? I thought you were trying to understand us,” the slightly panicked human said.

     “You remind me of an eagerly trusting idiot I used to hang out with. Killing those who have to see to believe has always been so easy for me,” he said with a chuckle.

     “What kind of monster fights using tears?” The human said now a little more irritated.

     “Actually ectoplasm dripping from my eyes and mouth is altered to higher densities… You know what, since you’re about to die it would probably be better for you to think of them as fatal tears of joy,” he said.

     “What reason do you have for trying to kill me?” The human asked.

     “Nothing in particular had set me off. I guess if I had to think about it,” he said while flying closer to the human.

     “First, you saw me and approached instead of running away which means you’ve only just found out you’re afraid of encountering ghosts, lucky me,” he said while flying over to the human’s left side.

     “Second, you’re a human, and they’re supposed to be rather tough, so causing you pain should be so much fun,” he said now moving behind the human’s back and to their right. The human looked at him but he slowly went invisible right in front of them and reappeared on top of the pile of leaves.

     “Lastly, you’re behaving peacefully when monsters believe those who don’t fight can’t have a future. I’m pretty sure killing someone like you would be a big deal,” he said while building up ectoplasm once more.

     “I feel that there are other things that people could be doing besides constantly looking for another fight. Wouldn’t it be less stressful to try to put smile on everyone’s face?” The human asked. Napstablook’s joyfully sinister expression became serious and intimidating.

     “You remind me of a free spirited idiot I used to hang out with,” he said before “crying” a large puddle of fatal tears on the floor. The human gasped as several sleeker streams of tears charged out of the puddle, climbed the walls, and stopped right above the human before raining down on them. The human attempted to run but the earlier drops landed on their back and started to burn. While they did power through the pain at first, they fell over halfway through and the remaining droplets ate at them like searing rain.

     “Stay calm, I can help you,” Flowey shouted to the now screaming and flailing human. He then began channeling his soul energy into the form of healing pellets. Upon propelling the pellets into the human their flesh was rapidly regenerating and the burning sensations came to a stop.

     “Interesting, you did a good job not drawing attention to yourself, and you’re able to heal! That’s some useful stuff but it’s not enough to save them,” Napstablook told Flowey while watching the human stand back up.

     “Why are so focused on getting in our way?” The human asked while taking a few quick breaths. Napstablook responded with a laugh.

     “I usually come to the ruins because no one’s dumb enough to try and mess with me. That way I can hum tunes for as long as I want and listen to them echo down the halls,” he said. After finishing his sentence he started humming the same spooky tune from before.

     “If you wanted us to avoid you then wouldn’t it have made more sense to let us know? If that’s all you wanted then why are you stopping us from moving on now?” The human asked feeling slightly irked.

     “True, you didn’t know better. But that’s the beauty of it all, you getting stuck in these crazy situations you didn’t even know about.” Napstablook’s statement caused the confused human to stare at Flowey who was definitely giving off a shrug albeit a lack of arms.

     “I wasn’t expecting to be approached by someone as fun as you. The perplexed look you had as your hand phased through my body and the terrified look of finding out you were fighting a ghost. What do you do when you encounter the unknown human, because I want to see more,” he continued. He then started shooting a spread of three to four tears one after another.

     “We buckle up and figure things out; I’m not going to crumble just because you think you can scare me to death,” the human said with an intense look devoid of fear. Napstablook gave a smirk before making a puddle of tears on the ground like last time.

     “Such sickening spirit, no matter, I still believe your dying eyes will prove to be more than interesting,” he said while unleashing the full attack. _Oh no, not this attack again. Hopefully they can handle it this time because I can’t make a lot of movements without drawing attention,_  Flowey thought to himself while keeping track of Napstablook’s gaze.

     The human ran away as the streams tried to close in from the top. Then as the streams picked up speed to lead the human they slid to a stop right before where the droplets were intercepting. They then rolled to right and ran back towards Napstablook with the droplets following close behind. As the last drop fell the human was in front of him once again while Flowey had dived assuming the human had his full attention.

     “You’ve gotten annoying pretty fast,” Napstablook said while giving a fierce stare to the human. However they didn’t flinch, instead they fearlessly met his gaze. “Oh well, at least I can try out this new technique. Pay attention, I call this ninja blook,” he continued. The human was watching but from their point of view nothing was happening.

     “Watch your back!” Flowey shouted before diving back under. The human and Napstablook both turned around as fast they could. Napstablook’s eyes rapidly darted from one side to another but Flowey was no longer in sight. The human turned in a way that caused them to take Napstablook’s spectral knife attack to the side of their stomach. The subsequent pain caused them to yell and fall over.

     “Pesky flower, you’ve got quite the friend,” Napstablook said while looking down at the human. “That would’ve been your spine if it weren’t for him, looks like you got stuck pretty deep nonetheless,” he continued. Flowey who was now around the corner to the back of Napstablook poked his head out to get the human in his line if sight. He then proceeded to create more healing pellets but as he was about to launch them into the human Napstablook vanished and reappeared right in front of him.

     “You almost escaped me. Never before have I known someone to move through the ground so quietly. I’m not going to kill you, in fact we’re going to watch the human’s last moments together,” Napstablook said while making his body transparent and turning towards the human. Flowey had dived and popped up on the other side of the human but Napstablook had beat him there.

     “There’s no way you could’ve predicted where I’d go!” Flowey said with a shocked expression. Napstablook only responded with a short laugh.

     “Look up.” Flowey both confused and scared simply followed his orders. The only thing he saw was the ceiling stained with the passing of many fatal tears.

     “What am I supposed to see?” Flowey asked.

     “You ever wondered why that attack can track so well; it’s because every ounce serves as a conduit for my sight. You look at the ceiling and just see countless stains but when I take a look it’s no different from having a bird's eye view of the place. Once that was done all I had to do was pretend that I couldn’t find you until the right time,” Napstablook explained. “Now we wait and see what kind of look the human has for me this time,” he finished.

     The human coughed up some blood and Napstablook started smiling again. He then made the knife disappear causing the human to bleed even more. The human turned on their side a bit to elevate the wound. They also noticed that the top part of their sleeve was almost completely detached as a result from the last time they were hit with the burning rain so they ripped the rest off and folded it in on itself before applying pressure to the wound.

     “Smart kid you are, but you’ve only bought a bit of time. It’s not like you can get help or stop enough blood from escaping so what are you going to do now?” Napstablook said. The human kept their position, laid their head back, and closed their eyes. _What a tough spot we’re in,_  they thought. _I knew that the chances of getting out were slim at best but I didn’t think there was a chance our journey would end so soon._ Napstablook watched on as the human helplessly lay there, but his smile slowly faded as the human started humming a tune.

     “Wait a minute, are you humming what I think you are?” Napstablook asked but he already knew the answer to his question. The immobilized human was humming his tune, however instead of the creepy vibe before the human’s sound was brighter and definitely more soothing. Napstablook continued to float in place with an angry look on his face.

     “No one has ever done that except…” Napstablook stopped talking as he saw Flowey right next to the human.

     “Thank you very much Flowey, I think you’ve saved my life about four times now.” The human said while sitting back up and patting the side of their stomach.

     “Don’t worry about it, just stay sharp because what’s important is making sure we both get out of here alive,” Flowey responded.

     “Sharp was a bad word choice but I understood where you’re coming from,” the human said while getting back on two feet and turning to face Napstablook.

     “You were in my sights all along, when did you get over there?” Napstablook asked.

     “The human must’ve struck a chord upon messing with your tune because your body went back to its pitch black color. At that moment I popped up next to them and healed them because while you should’ve been able to see me, you were clearly thinking about something else at the time,” Flowey said with a triumphant smile.

     “Listen, Blooky,” the human said.

     “You’re not allowed to call me Blooky!” Napstablook shouted.

     “I’m sorry, I just felt it would be easier to say. By any chance is there anything you would like to talk about,” the human asked patiently. Napstablook just took a deep breath.

     “Nope, I’m over it. You two can go and leave me alone now. People like you are bound to get themselves killed anyway,” Napstablook said before disappearing in front of their faces.

     “Well that was rude!” Flowey shouted at nothing in particular.

     “Don’t worry about it Flowey, he didn’t continue the fight and we managed to get through alive so we did well as far as I’m concerned. Let’s go, we’re not out of the woods yet,” the human said while heading toward the two exits.

     “Woods? We’re in the Ruins remember,” Flowey said while following the human into the leftward exit. Upon entering the next room the human noticed that the words four frogs were etched into the side of the wall.

     “I guess we found the old hangout for the Wise Croakers,” the human said. Flowey was about to respond but went silent as he heard the sound of the recently acquired cell phone start ringing.

     “Hello child, a quick question if you don’t mind answering,” Toriel asked as the human answered the phone.

     “I’ve got a bit of time, fire away,” the human said. _That was bad word choice,_  the human thought while taking a glance at Flowey.

     “Splendid, tell me which one do you prefer, cinnamon or butterscotch?” Toriel asked. _Interesting,_ the human thought. _While I like the thought of cinnamon I also wouldn’t mind having butterscotch either, but it’s not a choice I’d think about making everyday._

     “I’d prefer butterscotch, no cinnamon, but then again…” The human pondered.

     “Seems like a tough choice for you, if you want I could use both,” Toriel responded.

     “Both? Oh, ok that works out just fine,” the human responded.

     “Very well, I’ll see you when you get here,” Toriel said.

     “Wait a minute,” the human said quickly.

     “Yes my child?” Toriel responded.

     “You remember the clothes I was wearing when you first saw me?” The human asked.

     “How could I forget, you looked so adorable,” Toriel responded.

     “The thing is, I kind of ran into a bit of trouble recently,” the human said.

     “Oh no, you’re ok though right?” Toriel asked.

     “Yeah, I’m fine. Flowey had helped me out,” the human answered.

     “Oh, thank goodness,” Toriel responded.

     “Problem is my clothes got pretty messed up,” they explained.

     “Say no more, trust that I can make you a new set before you get here,” Toriel said confidently.

     “Really, thank you very much,” the human responded.

     “No problem my child, stay safe out there,” Toriel said.

     “I will, see you soon,” the human said before hanging up the phone. They then looked down at Flowey who gave the human a suspecting look.

     “You shouldn’t be getting too comfortable with Toriel. There’s a story saying that she quickly turned on a human child that was under her care down here and burned them alive. You should keep your guard up unless you want to be next,” Flowey said.

     “She might not be that bad, she’s definitely different from when she was ready to fry you in front of me,” the human said. Upon looking forward the human saw a sign straight ahead, but as they tried to approach it a clump of bouncing goop had emerged from the ground. The human caught off guard took two steps back and looked at Flowey.

     “What’s the deal?” Flowey asked before looking ahead. “Oh, that’s a Moldsmal, they usually have no issue watching things pass by. You should be able to ignore it if you want,” Flowey said.

     “Ok, that’d be a wise move,” the human said while leaning their top body to the left. To their surprise the Moldsmal imitated their movement. The human then leaned the top of their body to the right, and Moldsmal followed. The human then continued to rock left and right and so did the Moldsmal.

     “This is actually pretty fun, but I’ve got to get going, see you later,” the human said to the Moldsmal. The Moldsmal spat out a couple of gold coins, then sank back into the earth. The human wasn’t sure what to make of this.

     “They tend to spit out things they can’t digest. Looks like you have two gold pieces now,” Flowey said. The human a little bothered reluctantly picked up the gold pieces.

     “We’ve got you now,” a random voice said. Upon turning around it became apparent that the way forward and back were being blocked of by a pair of monsters. Directly behind them was a small cyclopean monster while on the other side was a bipedal cockroach that was unnaturally large compared to regular cockroaches. The human suddenly fell onto their hands and knees.

     “Kid, what’s wrong?” Flowey asked.

     “It’s just not fair, that thing is almost as big as I am,” the human whispered to their self.

     “What?” Flowey asked again.

     “Don’t worry about me, I may or may not be weak to bugs,” the human said. At that point the cockroach started talking.

     “Human, you spared the mold creature. That was cool, but we’re going to have to kill you,” the cyclopean violently waved his hands and made shushing noises.

     “Migosp, be quiet. I’m running this show, that’s how it’s always been and I always get what I want,” the cyclopean said before looking back at the human.

     “Listen, Loox tends to ask for what he wants indirectly and Migosp feels better after having some alone time,” Flowey whispered to the human.

     “Migosp, do it now,” Loox ordered. Migosp opened its mouth and a swarm of flying cockroaches flew around the human in the shape of a box.

     “I bet you don’t have the guts to try and pick on me,” Loox said while firing three slow moving orbs from his eye. The human side stepped the first orb, turned their torso to the left to dodge the second, and crouched down to talk to Flowey simultaneously dodging the third. _This is nothing compared to Napstablook,_  the human thought.

     “What’s the deal Flowey?” The human asked.

     “Go ahead and pick on him,” Flowey answered while the cockroaches flew back inside of Migosp. The human stood up and gave a shrug.

     “I…have… more eyes than you!” The human said to Loox.

     “Oh, so you think you’re smart huh?” Loox responded but the human just kept watching with an eyebrow raised. “Alright everyone, I’m out,” Loox said while walking off.

     “You’re leaving already? What about them?” Migosp asked.

     “They’re cool. See you later,” Loox said upon making his exit. At that point Flowey, the human, and Migosp all silently stared at each other in silence. Then to the human’s surprise Migosp started dancing like he didn’t have a care in the world.

     ”Yeah, nothing wrong with a bit of me time. Alright, take care human,” Migosp said to the human before making his leave as well. The human looked on the ground and noticed that more gold pieces had gotten left behind.

     “Man, people can be so careless nowadays,” Flowey said while watching the human gather the money. “I’m pretty sure those two got out really fast so there’s no point in trying to return it. Just make sure it doesn’t go to waste,” Flowey said. With all the distractions gone the human brought their focus back on the sign from earlier.

     On the sign it read; In case you missed it, there’s a spider bake sale going on. Just turn back around and go left at the fork. Come eat food made by spiders for spiders of spiders.

     “Spider bake sale?” The human asked.

     “Yeah, that tends to be a thing every now and then,” Flowey answered.

     “I’m not a big fan of bugs but I’m actually interested in seeing this,” the human said while walking back towards the way they came.

     “Why?” Flowey asked.

     “Because where I come from spiders don’t get paid,” the human answered. Flowey figured it best not to bother them any further and followed behind. Upon taking the rightward exit from the room which they met Napstablook, the human walked into another small room with no other exit. In the middle of the room was a sign and two spider webs were close to the ground.

     “The sign says all proceeds go to real spiders; just leave some gold pieces in a web when you want to buy something,” Flowey explained. The human walked over to the web on the left which had the number seven drawn in the dirt before it. Upon leaving seven pieces in the web a few spiders descended and hung a spider donut in front of the human.

     “Is this real?” The human asked Flowey while pointing at the spider donut.

     “Just come on and take it,” Flowey said with a giggle. The human shrugged and picked up the spider donut signaling the group of spiders to ascend back to where they came. Upon leaving the room the human looked at the donut.

     “I’m done with it, here Flowey,” the human said as they tossed the donut towards Flowey who opened his jaw surprisingly wide before downing the entire thing in one fell swoop.

     “Thanks, but you bought it, didn’t you at least think about trying it?” Flowey asked.

     “I did, but I couldn’t work with the whole handled by spiders bit plus I think there were several dead flies in there too,” the human answered. The two proceeded until they came across a room that had the exit blocked by another spike trap. Flowey saw a sign and went to go read it.

     “There is only one switch,” Flowey read. Upon searching around the room however he saw no switch in sight. The human walked over to Flowey but they fell through a hole in the floor and landed on a pile of leaves.

     “Are you ok?” Flowey asked.

     “Yeah, I’m doing fine,” the human answered.

     “Ok, you wouldn’t have happened to see a switch down there would you,” Flowey asked.

     “No, the only thing down here is an over sized vegetable,” the human answered. _An over sized vegetable?_ Flowey thought.

     “Don’t get too close to that,” Flowey said. It was too late however because upon being approached by the human the vegetable elevated itself from the ground and turned around to reveal itself as an enormous carrot with a face. The human was creeped out as the giant carrot let out a laugh.

     “Human, your body will become a new addition to Vegetoid’s garden,” the carrot said.

     “Flowey what am I supposed to do here?” The human asked while evading several smaller carrots with unnecessarily sharp ends.

     “Vegetoid really likes to prep food, ask him if he has anything to eat,” the human looked at Vegetoid who didn’t do much else besides sit and laugh.

     “Alright, hey, you wouldn’t happen to be able to share some food with me right? I’m kind of hungry,” the human asked.

     “Hmpf, and exactly how hungry are you? I don’t like having my talents go to waste,” Vegetoid responded.

     “I guess I’m a little hungry,” the human said.

     “Vegetoid shall not waste time appeasing a measly appetite,” Vegetoid pretentiously responded.

     “Fine, I could use a good meal, are you going to help me out?” The human asked. Vegetoid started laughing once more.

     “Vegetoid’s skill shall not disappoint human, behold the fruit of Vegetoid’s labor,” Vegetoid said. Meanwhile the human and Flowey both burst out laughing as Vegetoid finished his sentence.  _The fruit of the vegetable's... ok,_ the human thought.

     “Thank you Vegetoid. We hope to enjoy your fruit again on a later day,” the human said but they couldn’t stop their self from laughing mid way.

     “Vegetoid shall conquer the world’s stomachs,” Vegetoid said before planting himself back in the ground. Upon taking the stairs back up to the second floor where Flowey was the human started to eat a plate of sliced carrot, green beans, corn and potato.

     “You want any?” The human asked Flowey.

     “No, I’m fine,” Flowey answered.

     “Ok then, time to fall in some more holes,” the human said while looking for the next patch of soft ground. Upon finding one they did a cannonball into the pile of leaves below.

     “Any luck, this time?” Flowey asked upon popping up next to the same hole.

     “No switch, I’ll be back up in a sec,” the human said but they weren’t all that motivated to keep climbing stairs.

     “You again, you’re just asking for trouble,” a familiar voice said. The human rapidly turned around and saw that Napstablook had appeared right behind them with a frustrated look on his face.

     “Napstablook! I’m not here to cause trouble; I’m just looking for the switch that opens the way out of here,” the human said pleadingly.

     “It’s the second pit to the left from where you walked in,” Napstablook said angrily.

     “Ok, well thank you. Now that I think about it, earlier you said I was reminding you- stop talking,” Napstablook interrupted.

     “It’s bad enough that you don’t know when to stay away, sticking your nose in someone else’s business is even more annoying,” Napstablook responded.

     “I just wanted to know, you said no one had ever played tunes with you except for one person. I figured if you had someone else to do tunes with then we could probably be friends,” the human said. He only gave the human an even sharper glare than before.

     “My “friend” left me behind because they felt the things they had weren’t enough,” Napstablook said while turning away from the human.

     “They wanted more than anything to be like humans. They couldn’t resist the thought of experiencing a whole new world even if it meant changing their self. All because they didn’t feel that a ghost’s body could represent who they really were,” he said before turning to face the human again.

     “They probably got their wish, and I’m sure magma would take this mountain long before they’ll ever decide to come see me again!” Napstablook stared at the human who couldn’t find anything to say and started laughing as they brushed away a single tear forming on their right eye.

     “What’s the matter, haven’t you ever heard of a broken bond before? This is the beginning you know, you’ll keep hearing about rougher stories than mine the more you try to talk to everyone. You seek to make friends with as many monsters as possible but this world just isn’t that simple. If that was enough to hurt you then your heart won’t be able to handle the weight of the underground,” he said while levitating upward.

     “Wait a minute!” The human called out.

     “What is it this time?” He responded

     “I get that you’ve been through a lot, but it doesn’t help to leave the old wounds open. You’re bitter about trying to make new friends but could you at least give us a try?” The human asked. Napstablook only let out a short chuckle.

     “You know what; I’ll give it a shot, but only if you manage to follow your way through until the very end,” Napstablook said before vanishing in front of everyone. The human slowly climbed back up the steps to where Flowey was on the second floor.

     “The mood took a sour turn really fast; well it could’ve been worse,” Flowey said but the human ignored him and jumped into the pit with the switch. _Geez kid, I like you but that challenge he gave you is nigh impossible,_  Flowey thought. Upon seeing the determined look in the human’s eye as they climbed up another flight of stairs he figured that it just couldn’t be helped and followed them on. Two paths became noticeable upon entering the next area, one to the left and another straight ahead.

     “We’re definitely close to Toriel’s house. Just look at all of this dust floating about,” Flowey said with a serious look. The human looked around and was definitely able to make out a multitude of white particles floating about as well as a few piles lying on the ground here and there.

     “What’s over there?” The human asked while pointing to the path that leads straight ahead.

     “I’ll check it real quick,” Flowey said while diving under. It didn’t take long for him to pop up next to the human yet again.

     “It’s supposed to be some kind of shop but it looks abandoned. Let’s focus on getting out of here,” Flowey said. The human followed his advice and proceeded to head down the dusty trail leading to Toriel’s place. Upon passing up a leafless tree they could see a house in the distance and a very subtle humming sound was coming from within. As the human walked up to the house they felt the familiar sensation of their soul overflowing once more.

     “This is it, if we can make it through here then we’ll be out of the ruins,” Flowey said as the human approached the front door.

     “You’re not coming?” The human asked. Flowey shook his head no.

     “I would, but there’s no ground for me to move through and I won’t be able to hang on to your arm forever,” Flowey answered.

     “Come on, I’ll think of something,” the human said while kneeling down for Flowey.

     “If you say so,” Flowey responded before winding himself around the human’s arm. The human then proceeded to knock on the door causing the humming sound from earlier to come to a halt. Not too long afterwards the door opened and Toriel was there to greet the duo.

     “My child, you made it. Oh my, that situation with your clothes was more serious than I thought! No matter, the food will be ready in a moment so let’s get you into something more comfortable,” Toriel said while motioning the human into her house. Upon seeing Flowey latched on to the human’s arm she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The human looked around and saw a hallway on both the left and right sides while a staircase descended in the middle.

     “Follow me now,” Toriel said while heading towards the right hallway. The human followed and stopped as Toriel motioned them to a door on the left side.

     “This is going to be your room. I want you to have a nice stay. Come, take a look,” Toriel said while beckoning the human to go inside. The room was pretty tidy, there was a chest of toys next to the bed which was adorned with two stuffed animals the human couldn’t really identify. Toriel then came in behind the human with a box. Upon setting the box down she motioned the human over to the closet.

     “When you told me about the messed up clothes I took it upon myself to make you a new set, but then I thought about the case that something like that would happen again.” Toriel opened the closet and the human saw several copies of the same outfit hung from one end to the next. The main difference was the color palate being switched to black and red instead of blue and purple. _There’s no way she had time to make all this from the moment she called us,_  Flowey thought.

     “Thank you very much Toriel,” the human said while giving her a hug. _This is cool, but I’m going to miss the original every now and then,_  the human thought. Toriel hugged them back and gave them her warmest smile yet. She then moved over to the box she brought in earlier and opened it.

     “This is going to be essential for you when you need to move things around,” Toriel said. The human looked inside the box and saw that it was empty inside. “Confused?” Toriel asked. “Don’t worry, grab a few outfits and toss them in.” The human gave a shrug and followed her instructions. “Ok, you’re going to like this. Close the box yourself,” Toriel said.

     “Sounds simple enough,” the human said while following instructions but they were still unsure as for what to expect.

     “Alright, now watch me open the box,” she said. Toriel opened the box and the human’s jaw had dropped upon seeing that the contents of the box were now empty.

     “That’s pretty cool,” Flowey said.

     “It’s not over yet,” Toriel said enthusiastically. “Go ahead and open it yourself.” The human did so and was amazed upon seeing all the items they had placed inside return. “This box exists in multiple places at once and is connected to a void pocket. While the pocket is infinite by theory the box can only hold so much at once. The box sorts through the items in the pocket by recognizing the magic signature of the one who opened it,” she explained.

     “That’s great,” the human said. Shortly afterwards the human let out a yawn and Toriel started to giggle.

     “You’ve come a long way so it’s not surprising that you’re tired. Go ahead and make yourself at home, I’ll check on you once or twice throughout the evening,” Toriel said while making her exit. The human went to the closet the moment Toriel left them alone.

     “While a nap does sound good right now I have to get you situated first Flowey,” the human said while pulling a worn out boot from the bottom of the closet. Upon exiting the room and heading back towards the entrance the human didn’t see Toriel anywhere. They then opened the front door as stealthily as they could manage and stepped out onto the front lawn.

     “You can hop down for a second,” the human said while kneeling down to scoop dirt into the boot.

     “What’s this about?” Flowey asked.

     “This way I’ll be able to carry you around without you having to use your strength to cling to me,” the human responded. They then placed the boot next to Flowey who was hesitant about the idea but made his way in nonetheless. Upon getting acquainted with the new set up Flowey shrugged the best he could without arms.

     “It’s not too bad,” he said.

     “Sweet,” the human said while heading back into the house. It was safe to assume from the sound of running water and various clanging noises that Toriel was in the middle of cleaning the kitchen.

     “That stairway in the middle will be our way out of here. We should go for it while she’s asleep because it’ll be difficult to hide the sound of your footsteps right now,” Flowey whispered.

     “Really, but she’s washing dishes,” the human whispered back.

     “Trust me, those ears are not to be underestimated,” Flowey whispered in response. The human went back to the room and placed Flowey on the ground before the bed and got in to a fresh set of clothes.

     “I’ll be back at it in a few hours,” the human said before climbing into bed. “It’d be nice if we could just ask her to help us leave.”

     “It’s better to be safe than sorry, anyways goodnight,” Flowey said.

     “Goodnight to you too Flowey,” the human responded before rolling over in the covers.

     About five hours had passed that both the human and Flowey quietly rested in the room but the docile atmosphere quickly became unnerving as Flowey’s acute sense of awareness picked up someone attempting to sneak down the hall.

      _She’s not here to make trouble this late I hope,_  Flowey thought to himself. As the door was silently cracked open Flowey was clearly able to make out Toriel’s face slowly coming into view. Upon seeing the child peacefully dreaming she covered her mouth with one hand and tried to giggle as quietly as possible. However, when she saw Flowey on the ground her eyes slowly started to get wider.

      _Flack! Doesn’t she have anything better to do?_ Flowey thought. Toriel then shook her head side to side. _Huh, looks like she’s having another internal battle._ Suddenly the head shaking stopped and Toriel focused Flowey with a much more intense gaze and a shrinking smile. _That’s not a good sign,_  Flowey thought while slowly sinking into the boot. Flowey blinked as she continued to stare at him, however she did not.

     “Could you give us some more time please?” The human said. To both Toriel and Flowey’s surprise the human was now sitting up in bed rubbing one eye while barely opening the other.

     “Oh dear, sorry to bother you my child,” Toriel said before closing the door and walking off.

     “Good looking out, I’ll admit I was getting scared there for a moment,” Flowey said. The human fell back onto the pillow once more instead of responding. Flowey smiled and shook his head before focusing on getting comfortable again. The rest of their sleep went on uninterrupted.

     There was no telling whether or not it was day or nighttime. One thing for sure the house was quiet and the human felt a sense of unease.

     “Let’s take a look around,” Flowey said as the human carried him and the boot out of the room. “I think this is Toriel’s room,” the human said upon approaching a door to their left.

     “Don’t go in, if she’s asleep then it could ruin our chance to escape,” Flowey said as the human reached for the door knob.

     “If she’s awake then we were never sneaking out of here to begin with,” the human responded. Upon opening the door the human let out a gasp and covered Flowey’s face with one hand. There was a picture of Flowey hanging on the wall and the word key was spelled at the bottom of it in big red letters. A burnt plant was on top of the bookshelf with golden flower petals strewn across the base. Even more golden flower petals were laid out across the floor to spell the word name.

     “Out of the way,” Flowey said while maneuvering his face around the human’s hand. He then let out a gasp and retreated into the boot upon seeing the not so flower friendly room.

     “What’s this?” The human said while looking at an open book on top of Toriel’s desk. “I think this is her diary,” the human said to Flowey.

     “Really? Go ahead and read it to me,” Flowey said upon popping up and diving back into the boot.

     “The first page says 'flower plus death equals secret' at the top while the rest just has the sentence 'I don’t want to forget you' over and over,” the human said.

     “I’d be really happy if she did,” Flowey responded.

     “I don’t think she’s talking about you Flowey. Listen to this, I remember a green shirt with yellow stripes and black pants. There was another one, a green shirt with vanilla stripes and brownish-red pants. What else remained of them was already lost because of him. Each day I feel like I’m losing more. Fearing that both of them will be lost to me forever, I returned and pleaded before him. He made the flower the key to our deal and only having taken its life will I get the chance to learn the name again,” the human finished reading.

     “I have to die to meet the condition of a deal she made? That’s bull, who is this guy anyway,” Flowey asked.

     “That’s what it sounds like. How did this happen to her? Either way let’s leave this alone for now,” the human said while peeling their eyes away from the diary. Upon leaving, the human tried opening the door next to Toriel’s room but it was locked. The human then made their way back towards the eastern side of the house and stopped upon seeing Toriel in the living room reading in her recliner. _Great, I'm starting to think this one doesn’t sleep at all,_  Flowey thought.

     “Oh there you are child. I figured you’d be hungry when you woke up so I kept a slice of pie out for you. Don’t worry, it’s still warm,” Toriel said while generating a ball of flame directly over the pie. “I know you didn’t ask for it but I placed a container of powdered sugar next to the plate so you could try it with and without something extra,” Toriel said before going back into her book that had a snail on the cover.

     “Thank you,” the human said while sitting at the table and putting Flowey in their lap. While the cinnamon and butterscotch scents were pretty evident, the rest of the pie smelled off in a way. Still the human lifted a piece with their fork and took it in. Regret took hold instantly, both butterscotch and cinnamon tastes were greatly overpowered by wet dirt. The human spat it up back onto the plate.

     “What’s going on my child?” Toriel asked.

     “I don’t think I can handle any more of this,” the human responded. _She’s about to poison the kid at this rate,_  Flowey thought.

     “Nonsense,” Toriel responded. “I don’t get why you kids don’t like to eat but you need to finish your plate right now,” Toriel said while walking over to the human. She then sprinkled the powdered sugar over the slice of pie and lifted it up with her bare hands.

     “Wait a minute,” Flowey said while watching the powdered sugar fall off the side of the slice. Upon completing his thought he let out a gasp.

     “Open wide,” Toriel said while moving the pie closer to the human’s face.

     “Stop!” Flowey shouted while head butting the pie out of Toriel’s hand. “That’s not powdered sugar!” Flowey said while turning from Toriel to the human. “That’s monster dust!” The human felt like throwing up at the thought of downing mud and dead monsters.

     “Look at this mess, you two are becoming quite the handful,” Toriel said.

     “Enough,” the human said while popping up from their seat. “We’re leaving the ruins right now,” Toriel was taken aback upon hearing that. She then started to laugh nervously.

     “No more funny business Toriel. I’m heading home right now,” the human said.

     “What do you mean? This is your home now,” Toriel responded.

     “No it’s not, this place bars the exit to the ruins and I’m leaving,” the human said. At that point Toriel had lowered her head down.

     “That’s it? You want to leave me all alone? After I made a place for you? After I cleaned up for you!” Toriel said while slamming her fist on the table.

     “Run. Run! I said RUN!” Flowey told the human while Toriel continued to talk. The human grabbed Flowey and took off towards the staircase. It didn’t take long for them to smell smoke behind them.

     “How dare you be so ungrateful!” Toriel screamed. The human made it to the bottom of the steps and started running down the long corridor as fast as they could while Flowey watched their back.

     “Get down,” Flowey said. The human ducked on command and started moving again after seeing a fireball pass over their head.

     “Here comes another one,” Flowey said. The human picked up the pace and managed to make the next corner before the fireball could catch them in the back.

     “I can see the door, we’re going to make it,” the human said as the exit came into view.

     “Oh no,” Flowey said.

     “What is it?” The human asked. At that point the human looked back and saw Toriel place her hand on the wall. A small blaze came off of her hand and zoomed down the side of the wall before simultaneously passing up and cutting off the human’s escape route.

     “Flack! I had a feeling it wouldn’t go that smoothly,” Flowey said as the human slid to a stop. “Go ahead and put me down,” Flowey said. The human obeyed and was surprised to see the fork from earlier was sticking out of the boot.

     “Why is- I took it earlier, you have to use it!” Flowey interrupted. “If we don’t challenge her here and now then it’ll be the end of both of us!” Flowey said while climbing out of the boot and onto the ground.

     “How is a fork going to help me take her on?” The human asked.

     “As long as you focus on LOVE you should be able to turn anything into a weapon,” Flowey answered.

     “LOVE? Really?” The human responded.

     “Your Level of Violence. Did I never get back to that?” Flowey asked.

     “No, you didn’t. That doesn’t even make sense,” the human responded.

     “Well, if we live through this than it’ll be a good story,” Flowey said. Meanwhile Toriel was advancing down the hall, a firestorm followed behind her with each step. The human felt a chill run down their spine as Toriel stopped and generated a flame in each one of her hands.

     “It’s bad manners to not appreciate the work others have done for you. We were going to be a happy little family but you thought it better to play with my emotions instead!” The human started to sweat as the flames in each hand had intensified.

     “Problem children like you must be punished!” Toriel screamed. The human assumed a defensive stance with the fork as Toriel approached. Seeing this Toriel placed one hand on her hips while launching a fireball with the other. The human dodged the attack by side stepping to the left while Flowey had dived out of sight. Not too long after that both the human and Toriel heard coughing sounds but neither one of them could find Flowey at the moment.

     “Pesky weed, I’ll handle him after you’ve learned your lesson,” Toriel said upon turning her gaze on the human yet again.

     “Cyclonic Blaze!” Toriel said while holding her hand out. At that point a spiraling flame erupted from her hand and pursued the human. The human ducked as the flame came at them head on. They then dove to the right as the flame came back from the other side before rolling backward to escape the attack as it curled around to strike from above.

     “I don’t want to do this but I can’t stay with you either,” the human said upon getting back on two feet. Toriel then flicked a small fireball at them and knocked the fork out of their hand.

     “Your disobedience will no longer be tolerated,” Toriel said while generating a flame whip. The human tried to predict and evade where the whip would strike but it was just too fast for them. As the whip bound and burned them they began screaming in pain. She then tossed them against the wall before dispelling the whip and walking towards them once more. Suddenly Flowey’s healing pellets could be seen entering the human’s body. Upon quickly turning around Toriel saw Flowey sticking out of the dirt that made up the ceiling.

     “Uh oh,” Flowey said as Toriel flung a fireball at him. She got annoyed as Flowey dove back into the ceiling and popped up while coughing a little ways down the hall.

     “Flame Watcher’s Avatar,” Toriel said while waving her hand. Suddenly an enormous spectral hand appeared out of nowhere and started suspending large balls of fire throughout the air.

     “Don’t do it!” The human shouted while running towards Toriel, but she snapped her fingers causing another streak of flame to separate them from her. At that point the hand disappeared and the large fireballs advanced towards Flowey, each exploding with a decent radius upon hitting the ground. Flowey repeatedly dived and surfaced as the attack gave chase. Each time he had coughed upon popping up from the ground. As the attack reached the corner of the hallway Flowey was no longer in sight.

     “Flame Watcher’s Eye,” Toriel said while pointing ahead with one finger. A spherical fire started to travel down the hall while periodically emitting warm waves of heat. The orb started to make a strange noise after a while and Toriel began to follow after it. The human getting pretty worried at the moment was surprised to see Flowey pop up right next to them. They then held their hand up to his face and covered his cough.

     “Thanks,” Flowey said while slouching over as if he was wilting. “I’m sorry, I can’t help you beat her. This place is just too small and she’s burned everything from here to there. If I have to keep moving through scorched earth I’ll just end up choking to death,” he explained.

     “There has to be something we can do,” the human said. They then tried to power through the exit barring flames and grab the door but it was too much.

     “Don’t be foolish, unless you overpower her you’re never getting out of here!” Flowey said as the human drove their seared hands into the dirt.

     “Well, what do we have here?” Toriel said upon seeing the now exhausted Flowey. “Looks like this game of hide and seek is finally over,” she said while generating an insanely intense looking fireball in both hands.

     “Azure Deathball!” Toriel shouted while launching the attack directly at Flowey.

     “No!” The human screamed while running towards Flowey. They knew they weren’t thinking properly. They also knew they weren’t all that strong. But they also knew that they couldn’t just stand there.

     “No way!” Flowey said as the human stood right in front of him. Upon getting blasted with the attack the human flew backwards and bounced off the exit door. Meanwhile Toriel had placed both hands over her mouth and extinguished all the flames in the area. After that both she and Flowey made their way over to the human’s side. Toriel picked up the human’s severely burned body and started crying as they struggled to raise their hand just to fail.

     “No. No. Not again,” she said. Flowey wasn't taking the human's death any better but suddenly his sadness was replaced with confusion as everything else in the world started to slow down and lose color. Then the walls, the floor and even Flowey himself started to liquefy. The entire melting world started to converge on the human’s dead body. At that point Flowey became wrapped in his own thoughts. _That power, if they’re doing this. That can only mean I don’t have it anymore._


End file.
